Hi there! Today, we’re going to learn about some special trees called evergreens. These trees are unique because they keep their leaves and stay green all year round. During a nature walk, we saw three types of evergreen trees: fir, pine, and spruce. They might look similar, but you can tell them apart by looking at their needles, which are the long, skinny leaves on their branches. Let’s find out how to identify each one!
The easiest way to spot a pine tree is by looking at its twigs, which are the smallest parts of its branches. Check out the needles growing from the twig. If you see a bunch of long needles growing from the same spot, it’s a pine tree! If there’s only one needle growing from each spot, then it’s not a pine tree. It could be a fir or a spruce tree.
To tell if a tree is a fir, look at its needles. Fir needles are flat, which makes them hard to roll between your fingers. So, if you find flat needles, you’re looking at a fir tree!
Spruce needles are different because they are more square-shaped, with four sides. This shape makes it easy to roll a spruce needle between your fingers. So, if you can roll the needle, it’s a spruce tree!
Now that we know how to tell these trees apart, let’s play a fun game called “Guess That Evergreen!” Imagine you have some drawings of trees from a nature walk. Here’s how you can identify them:
Next time you go for a walk, look at the trees around you. Are they evergreens? Can you tell which kind they are? Maybe even draw a picture of them!
Thanks for learning about pine, fir, and spruce trees with us! If you want to share your field journal drawings, you can email us at [email protected]. See you next time!
Needle Detective: Go on a nature walk with an adult and collect some needles from different evergreen trees. Bring them home and try to identify each one using what you’ve learned. Are they flat, square, or in bunches? Write down your findings in a special tree journal and draw pictures of the needles you find.
Evergreen Art: Create a collage using different materials to represent the needles of pine, fir, and spruce trees. Use green yarn for pine needles, flat green paper strips for fir needles, and green pipe cleaners for spruce needles. Arrange them on a piece of paper to make your own evergreen forest!
Tree Talk: Imagine you are a tree detective and you have to explain to a friend how to identify a pine, fir, and spruce tree. Practice explaining the differences using simple words and gestures. You can even make up a fun story about a day in the life of an evergreen tree and share it with your family!
